<div class="ExternalClass6697999891E7435B8DD1A8193A6B1127"><p><span style="text-align:justify;">As visitors walk along the main pathway at Katy Heritage Park, they will notice the names of several Katy Independent School District teachers etched, not just onto bricks, but into Katy ISD's legacy.</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">A total of 63 bricks were dedicated to the 2016-2017 Campus Teachers of the Year who have devoted countless hours towards the education of their students.</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><br></p><p style="text-align:justify;">Behind every successful student there is an encouraging teacher who has been a guiding force for future leaders. These Katy ISD teachers never set out to be recognized but their commitment has made a difference in the lives of many students. These bricks will leave a lasting legacy of their remarkable commitment to uphold the district's vision of education. </p><p style="text-align:justify;">Being a teacher in Katy ISD gives our educator a life of true meaning and purpose. The district has some of the best teachers in the country. Because they see potential in students, many leaders in various professions carry on the district's vision to "<em>Be the Legacy</em>".</p><p style="text-align:justify;">Katy ISD thanks Venus Construction, Rover Oaks and the Katy Heritage Society for providing a space for the brick laying. During the ceremony, the Taylor High School Chamber Choir provided entertainment with several singing performances.</p><p style="text-align:justify;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1754077981278950.1073742095.113148448705253&type=1&l=8c301612bd">Pictures of the Teacher of the Year Brick Unveiling</a> </p></div>

<div class="ExternalClassD719C1D9DA1F434F9ADD6CC740EAC6B1"><p><a href="http://www.scholastic.com/bf/bearcreekelementaryschool9">​The Buy One Get One Free Book Fair is coming in April. Everything will be buy one get one free. This is an excellent opportunity to get some great books for the summer. There will be something for everyone! Please check it out!​</a></p><p><br></p></div>

<div class="ExternalClassD8A563DACAED4A2BB49C7D95C6DBC82A"><p><span style="text-align:justify;">After receiving input from the Katy Independent School District community, through Y</span><em style="text-align:justify;">our District, Your Voice</em><span style="text-align:justify;"> initiative, the Board of Trustees approved to change the 2018-19 transportation model.</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">Beginning this fall, Katy ISD will transition to a multi-bell schedule.</span><br></p><p style="text-align:justify;">The 2018-19 transportation model will include four groups that will begin and dismiss at different times of the school day. Elementary campuses will be divided in two groups.</p><table cellspacing="0" width="100%" class="ms-rteTable-default"><tbody><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default" style="width:33.3333%;"><strong>Grade Level</strong></td><td class="ms-rteTable-default" style="width:33.3333%;"><strong>AM Start Time</strong></td><td class="ms-rteTable-default" style="width:33.3333%;"><strong>PM Dismissal Time</strong></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default">High School</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">7:25 a.m.</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">2:35 p.m.</td></tr><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default">Elementary Group 1</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">8:00 a.m.</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">3:20 p.m.</td></tr><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default">Elementary Group 2</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">8:20 a.m.</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">3:40 p.m.</td></tr><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default">Junior High School</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">8:45 a.m.</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default">3:55 p.m.</td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p style="text-align:justify;">Currently, the Katy ISD Transportation Department is in the process of establishing routes and pairing elementary schools to determine which campuses will be included in Elementary Group 1 and Elementary Group 2. Information on the start and end times for these campuses will be presented to the Board of Trustees for approval. The information will be announced at a later date.</p><p>Parents who have questions about the new transportation multi-bell schedule can visit: <a href="/dept/transportation/Documents/020118_Transp%20Q%20and%20A.pdf">Katy ISD Transportation Questions and Answers</a>. </p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass8BFE2709889D48469FB360D596750D30"><p>​<img src="/PublishingImages/Lists/latestnews/AllItems/Your%20District%20Your%20Voice%20-%20smaller.jpg" alt="Your District Your Voice - smaller.jpg" style="margin:5px;" /></p><p>March 1, 2018</p><p>Dear Katy ISD Parents/Guardians, Community and Staff,</p><p>After careful consideration and review of feedback from 20,000 parents and community members, the Board of Trustees approved a change to the 2018-19 Katy ISD transportation model at the February 26 Regular Board Meeting.</p><p>Beginning this fall, Katy ISD campuses will transition to a multi-bell schedule. However, criteria for transportation eligibility will remain the same. Elementary students residing outside of a ½-mile radius of their school and secondary students outside of a 1-mile radius, will continue to be eligible for transportation services. </p><p>The 2018-19 transportation model will include four groups that will begin and dismiss at different times of the school day. Elementary campuses will be divided in two groups. Elementary Group 1 will begin school at 8:00 a.m. and dismiss at 3:20 p.m., and Elementary Group 2 will begin at 8:20 a.m. and dismiss at 3:40 p.m. All junior high campuses will begin at 8:45 a.m. and dismiss at 3:55 p.m. High school start and dismissal times (7:25 a.m. – 2:35 p.m.) will remain unchanged. </p><p>Katy ISD's Transportation Department is in the process of establishing routes and pairing elementary schools to determine which campuses will be included in Elementary Group 1 and Elementary Group 2. Information on the start and end times for each elementary campus will be presented to the Board of Trustees at the Regular Meeting on April 23, 2018. In the meantime, please take a moment to review our <a href="/dept/transportation/Documents/020118_Transp%20Q%20and%20A.pdf">Transportation Questions and Answers.</a> This Q & A will be updated as additional questions are brought to our attention.</p><p>We greatly appreciate the guidance of our parents and community as the 2018-19 model was developed over these past few months. This model will allow the District to provide the same level of service to families in 2018-19 while enabling us to utilize our drivers more efficiently, as well as address safety concerns in areas of the District that are becoming increasingly congested.</p><p>Thank you for your continuous support and feedback.</p><p>Katy ISD</p></div>

<div class="ExternalClassF7F5F6CCC16B427FB371474B760C525A"><p>As part of the Katy Independent School District, "<em>Your District, Your Voice</em>" initiative, the community has provided its input for the upcoming yearly instructional calendar. The Katy ISD Board of Trustees has approved the following option for the 2018-2019 academic year: </p><table cellspacing="0" width="100%" class="ms-rteTable-default"><tbody><tr><td class="ms-rteTable-default" style="width:50%;">Option #1</td><td class="ms-rteTable-default" style="width:50%;"><p>School Begins: Wednesday, August 15</p><p>School Ends: Thursday, May 23</p><p>Instructional Calendar Days: 177</p><p>Full week off for Thanksgiving</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>"The District is required to have a minimum of 75,600 minutes of instruction per school year," says Bonnie Holland, associate superintendent for administration, governance and legal affairs. "With the options approved, Katy ISD has enough calendar minutes to cover two bad weather days," added Holland.</p><p>K-12 <em>Insight</em>, the external research firm conducting the survey, found that, out of the 22,169 participants, 65% favored option #1. The Board also approved an instructional calendar for 2019-2020 school year. This calendar mirrors the preferred components of the 2018-19 calendar.​​​​</p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass15925A9DB283456981349635801E5623"><h1>​​​<a href="https://www.smore.com/xzn8u-bear-creek-elementary-newsletter">Look what is happening at Bear Creek Elementary in February!​</a></h1></div>

<div class="ExternalClass3E5A9F12D8BA4DBBA6A9676FD3EFC628"><p>​<span style="text-align:justify;">Ever wondered what life was like in Texas during the late 1800's?</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">At the upcoming 33</span><sup style="text-align:justify;">rd</sup><span style="text-align:justify;"> Annual </span><a href="/dept/olc/Pages/FolkLifeFestival.aspx" style="text-align:justify;">Katy Folk Life Festival</a><span style="text-align:justify;">, visitors will get a chance to experience pioneer life by seeing how they dressed, how they survived, the types of foods they prepared and even where their children went to school.</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">Other activities include:</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">blacksmith demonstrations, hand quilting, woodworking and roping skills presentations.</span><span style="text-align:justify;"> </span><span style="text-align:justify;">Admission is only $1.</span></p><p><strong>Where:</strong> <br>Kenneth D. Welch Outdoor Learning Center<br>6301 S. Stadium Lane<br>Katy, TX 77494</p><p><strong>When:</strong><strong> <br></strong><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><strong>Saturday, April 7<br></strong></span><strong>9 a.m. – 4 p.m.</strong></p><p></p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass91E94EBC57814372824E4B064099AB2A"><p>​<span style="text-align:justify;">The <a href="https://www.niche.com/k12/search/best-school-districts/m/houston-metro-area/">2018 Best School Districts rankings</a> have been announced and looks like "</span><em style="text-align:justify;">The Best is in the West</em><span style="text-align:justify;">" for the Greater Houston area, with Katy Independent School District taking the top spot.</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;">Niche, a ranking and review organization for K-12 schools, assesses school districts across America every year. Katy ISD received an overall grade of "A+" for its outstanding educational accomplishments. The rankings are based on rigorous analysis of key statistics, reviews from students and parents, as well as data from the U.S. Department of Education. Ranking factors include state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, SAT/ACT scores, teacher quality, public school district ratings and more.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">Katy ISD is known as one of the fastest growing school districts in the country and currently has an enrollment of over 77,000+ students. </p><p style="text-align:justify;">​Learn more about the Niche 2018 Best School Districts in the Houston Area​ on their <a href="https://www.niche.com/k12/search/best-school-districts/m/houston-metro-area/">website​</a>.<br></p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass2280F6119EA34A048DF4776A717EFE46"><p></p><div>Texas weather has not been kind and continues to bring many challenges to our community. Due to the wintery conditions that caused the District’s closure last Tuesday and Wednesday, we need to alert you to a change to our 2017-18 Instructional Calendar.</div><div><br></div><div>As you may know, Katy ISD, along with all Texas school districts, is required by state law to have 75,600 minutes of instructional time built into its calendar each year. While the Texas Education Agency (TEA) granted our district a waiver for missed instructional time this past fall as a result of Hurricane Harvey related closures, the District has been informed that waivers will not be provided for last week’s bad weather days.</div><div> </div><div>Unfortunately, our students lost significant instructional time this year. <span style="text-decoration:underline;"><em>Monday, February 19</em></span><em> is currently designated as a bad weather day and will be used to make up instructional time </em><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><em>for all students</em></span><em>. Additionally, in order to be in compliance with state law, </em><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><em>the secondary school day will be extended by ten minutes during the week of May 14-18, with dismissal being at 2:45 p.m. each day. </em></span><em> </em></div><div> </div><div>We recognize that this may be an inconvenience for some families, and we apologize ahead of time for that. Just as we must meet the requirements of the law, it is also just as important that we are in a position to ensure that we can effectively achieve our mission to provide educational excellence and opportunities that prepare our students for success in college, career and life. With that said, having our students in school to grow and learn is of the utmost importance. </div><div>As always, your understanding and support is greatly appreciated. </div><div><br></div></div>

<div class="ExternalClass7FEF873CE2F24457AD30079AAAF37A2E"><p>The Spring 2018 Katy ISD Community Education classes are now open for registration. The purpose of Community Education is to provide the general public with learning opportunities including self-improvement, enrichment, recreation and academic courses.</p><p>Classes include learning opportunities pertaining to recreational activities, arts and crafts, health and personal development, foreign languages, business and industry skills, finance, computer applications, driver education, college preparatory, and multiple online courses.</p><p>For more information, visit the <a href="/dept/ce/Documents/Community_Education_Course_Catalog.pdf">Community Education catalog online</a> or call 281-396-6365. </p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass67ECF89F25FF4800A48169BCD7DE7D05"><p style="text-align:left;"><span style="text-align:left;">Katy ISD is one of 447 school districts in the United States and Canada being honored by College Board with placement on the </span><strong style="text-align:left;">8</strong><strong style="text-align:left;"><sup>th</sup></strong><strong style="text-align:left;"> Annual </strong><strong style="text-align:left;">AP</strong><strong style="text-align:left;"><sup>®</sup></strong><strong style="text-align:left;"> District Honor Roll</strong><span style="text-align:left;"> for increasing access to Advanced Placement (AP) course work while simultaneously improving the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP exams.</span><br></p><p>From 2015 to 2017, the number of AP exams administered in Katy ISD increased by 23 percent. The number of students participating in AP exams increased 26 percent to 9,478 in 2017 and the number of students receiving a 3 or higher increased by 24.6% in those two years. </p><p>To be included on the AP District Honor Roll, participating districts must: </p><ul><li>Increase participation/access to AP course work by at least 4 percent in large districts, at least 6 percent in medium districts and at least 11 percent in small districts.</li><li>Increase or maintain the percentage of exams taken by Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students who scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP exam.</li><li>Improve or maintain performance levels when comparing the percentage of students in 2017 scoring a 3 or higher to those in 2015, unless the district has already attained a performance level at which more than 70 percent of its AP students are scoring a 3 or higher. </li></ul><p style="text-align:justify;">For more information on the AP District Honor Roll, visit the <a href="http://professionals.collegeboard.com/k-12/awards/ap-district-honor-roll">College Board website</a>.</p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass8C5518ED4CBC4C979DE0A4935FD88E96"><h1><a href="/campus/BCE/Documents/Dyslexia%20Parent%20Education.pdf">​For more information about dyslexia, please click here.</a></h1><p>​<br></p><h1>​​<a href="/dept/Interv/Pages/Dyslexia.aspx">You may also visit the district web page by clicking here.​</a><br></h1></div>

<div class="ExternalClassF311D8DB26B041319FDCC2F4C340420B"><p>​As many families and staff continue recovery efforts in our neighborhoods, homes and community, we are also slowly but surely getting back on track with the business of teaching and learning across Katy ISD campuses. As you ​​know, our students lost two weeks of instructional time as a result of Tropical Storm Harvey. However, because the Texas Education Agency (TEA) will be waiving up to 10 instructional days, there will be no need to extend the 2017-18 instructional calendar, or to modify the Thanksgiving, Christmas/winter, and spring breaks.​</p><p>Our Curriculum Department has worked diligently over the past few weeks to realign and restructure the curriculum unit plans to ensure that all state standards will be taught this school year. As such, there will be no gaps in the taught and tested curriculum. </p><p>Also, to ensure that our students receive the full benefits of the Katy ISD learning experience, we have identified means to regain lost instructional time to deliver additional support to students. This includes providing enrichment resources for our families, supplementary study opportunities for Advanced Placement (AP) students, and extending four early release days to full days of instruction. </p><p><u>Enrichment Resources for Families:<br></u>Online instructional enrichment activities developed by our Curriculum Department are available for parents or guardians to work with their child(ren) at home. These enhanced learning activities are ungraded and optional, and are available on the <a href="/dept/ci/Pages/Enrichment.aspx">Katy ISD Curriculum & Instruction website​</a>. Each core subject area will be covered for the remainder of the school year. These subjects include language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. ​</p><p><span style="text-decoration:underline;">Support for Advanced Placement (AP) Students:<br></span>Additional study opportunities will also be offered to students preparing for the May 2018 AP exams. Review sessions and resources are currently being developed and will be shared with students, and published on the website later this Fall.</p><p><u>Extending Four Early Release Days:<br></u>The 2017-2018 instructional calendar included six "early release" days that are typically designated for professional development, teacher preparation, and parent conferences. Four of the previously designated early release days (Oct. 9, 20, Feb 16, April 13) will be extended to full instructional days. This is designed to allow students more time in the classroom, as well as to serve the needs of so many of our families who are displaced by Harvey and depending, now more than ever, on the daily routine of school to bring a sense of normalcy to their child(ren)'s lives. We understand that October 9 and 20 had been set aside for parent/teacher conferences at many campuses. However, in lieu of the in-person conferences, parents are encouraged to communicate with teachers by email and/or phone. Parents should also continue to monitor their student's progress on the <a href="/pages/home-access-center.aspx">Home Access Center</a>. Friday, December 15 and Thursday, May 24 will remain "early release" days since final exams are given on those dates.</p><p>Thank you for your understanding as we move forward with these post-Harvey initiatives to recapture lost instructional time and to provide additional support to our students and families. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your school. </p></div>

<div class="ExternalClassAD13A4A6AFD44DFD852D0E5CD2469D0D"><p>​</p><span class="SUGbold" style="color:#222222;background-color:#ffffff;"><strong>Bear Creek Elementary WatchDOGS</strong></span><span style="color:#222222;background-color:#ffffff;"></span><h1 class="SUGHeaderText" style="background-color:#ffffff;">Bear Creek Elementary WatchDOGS Sign-Up</h1><p style="color:#222222;background-color:#ffffff;"><a href="http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0c48a5a82babf94-bear">Interested in being a WatchDOGS volunteer? Sign up here and let us know when you would like to come volunteer for the day at BCE! (Just click and go to the sign up page.)​</a>​</p></div>

<div class="ExternalClass05DFA2EF112247A2A1FDDD81BE610637"><p>​Please click to read some important information on how you can help your child with school.</p><p><a href="/campus/BCE/Documents/elemmay16r.pdf">English</a></p><p><a href="/campus/BCE/Documents/selemmay16r.pdf">Spanish</a></p></div>

It is the policy of Katy ISD not to discriminate on the basis of sex, disability, race, religion, color, gender, age, or national originin its educational programs and/or activities, including career and technology programs, nor in its employment practicesand to provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.

Katy ISD is not responsible for the content on external websites or servers.